Imbroglio
by Amai-chan1993
Summary: Perhaps if she had chosen to be a teacher instead of a government worker none of this would have ever happened. Venture into Brenda Faling's life as she confronts the very real nightmare of the Akatsuki appearing on Earth, smack dab in the middle of her average life.
1. Pilot

**A/N: For those who are new to my humble story, welcome to Imbroglio! It is my honest attempt at writing the ever-clichéd plot of the Akatsuki coming to our world. However, I have attempted to make it as realistic as possible, which means there won't be any romance between an Akatsuki character and one of my OCs. If that's what you're looking for, I don't recommend reading my story. **

**Welcome back to those who have read Imbroglio before! Please note that I have gone back and edited the first few chapters, so you may want to go back and reread as I've added more Akatsuki parts and made some changes to the general plot development. **

**I'd especially like to thank my beta Illicium Verum for taking the time to go through the chapters of my story and correct the mistakes and plot holes I left. I truly appreciate all the hard work you've put into this!**

**I'd like to thank daydreamer1008 for putting up with my incessant questioning and for giving me a couple suggestions and to Hurlstien for being my very first reviewer! **

**I'd also like to give a special thanks to Hurlstien, Midnighter67, Shi No Kitsune, and daydreamer1008 for favoriting Imbroglio. **

**Please take the time to leave a review at the end; I'm an old fashioned writer who loves getting feedback!**

**I hope you enjoy!**

**Please note that spoken Japanese is in "**_**italics"**_** while English is in normal text. Thoughts are in plain **_**italics **_**with no quotation marks.**

Chapter 1

Pilot

At promptly five minutes past four in the morning, the sharp trill of the home phone blasted with what seemed like the ferocity of a fog horn. Drearily, Brenda groped around the bedside table for the phone and picked it up just as the voice message was about to start.

"What?" She grumbled, irritated at being woken at such an early hour.

"Brenda, it's Frank. I'm going to need you to come in. Remember our conversation last week? It's time for you to step up to the plate."

Curiosity piqued, Brenda agreed and moved to get ready. Sighing, she glanced at her peacefully sleeping husband and leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

"Hun, I've got to head to work early. I'll see you after work, ok?"

After hearing his grunt of acknowledgement, she got up and rushed through her morning routine, mind whirring about what could be important enough to warrant a call at such an ungodly hour. Deciding to stop worrying about it for the moment, she quickly got herself ready and on the familiar route to work. She half listened to the radio host as they murmured about the latest celebrity gossip and random headline stories.

'...And, for the latest news about the largest solar flare to date from just this past weekend, scientists have declared that we are officially clear of the radiation that affected our transmission waves!' Brenda heard the charismatic voice of the radio host announce ecstatically. _Good, _she thought to herself. _Now I won't have to listen to Richard's complaints about missing the game. _

A small smile remained on her face at the thought as she pulled up to the first security guard to show him her ID for clearance. The security guard waved her through and she drove down into the employee parking garage.

As she parked in the first available space, Brenda spotted her friend and fellow operations manager, Sasha, walking swiftly towards the elevator to the employee entrance. Brenda called out to her and hurried to catch up as Sasha stalled the elevator doors for her.

They both waited in the bland elevator as it ascended and Brenda asked. "So, do you have any idea what the situation we've been called in for is?"

Sasha sighed and answered "No idea, but it sounds pretty urgent. I heard all of the operation managers have been called in along with the highest level military generals."

Stunned, Brenda stared at Sasha and could only say, "Damn. This can't be good then..." The elevator then reached the lobby and they walked out and up to the standard metal detectors and bag scanners.

Within the next few minutes, Brenda sat along with a large array of military generals and operation managers. Frank stood at the head of the room with control of the two high tech screens on the wall; he turned it to a collection of photos from the case portfolio.

The room went silent as he opened his mouth to speak. "This," He began as he adjusted the screen to focus on the first picture. "Is the reason that we have called you in today."

In the displayed picture, the body of what was once a pretty, young girl laying flat on the floor in a distorted position. Her legs were very obviously broken, as the white bone protruded from the skin like ice bergs in a crimson sea of blood. Her arms, while not crushed, were pulled above her head and stabbed straight through the hands, pinning them to the ground with what looked like a strange, old fashioned knife. What stood out most prominently, however, was the large symbol made of blood, comprised of a large circle with an equilateral triangle inside with the tips just touching the inside of the circle that the body laid at the center of.

Brenda intensely studied the picture as a contemplative hush fell over the gathered group. Frank took in the mixed reactions before continuing. "As you have noticed, this is a noticeably violent murder, and what has drawn the attention of the Pentagon is the sheer number of murders that have occurred just like this one in the past few days, all of which have this strange symbol with the body in the center." He paged through the pictures, each displaying a gruesome murder with the strange symbol. Brenda carefully considered the images, mentally paging through her memories to try and establish a connection to a known cult.

"As disturbing as these murders are, wouldn't a case like this go to the FBI? We're the Pentagon, we're tasked with military and government matters." Sasha questioned.

Frank smiled grimly. "I was just getting to that. As Sasha mentioned, normally a case like this would be delegated to the Bureau, but murders with this same symbol have appeared at the sites of bombings that we suspect were headed by Al Qaeda factions."

He switched to a screen full of pictures of the ruins left by the bombings. "Due to the suspicion that Al Qaeda is involved, I am having all of our operation managers' work on a task force to quickly root out the base of the group that is orchestrating these attacks on US soil." Brenda's forehead creased as she thought back to the knife stabbed through the woman's hand in the picture. The ground was made of cement, but the knife pierced straight through it like butter. _Either there was an existing hole there, or something had to have enough strength to nail the knife in the woman's hands. _She noted the oddity in the image before shifting her full attention to Frank, who began to address the room.

"Alright," Frank sighed as he massaged the bridge of his nose. "I have had copies of the information sent to all of your offices for you to look over. Please take today to study the information and compile anything you deem valuable to present tomorrow at a meeting. We're done here, so you're all dismissed. Brenda, may I speak with you a second?"

As everyone filed out, Brenda walked over to Frank and stood stiffly in front of him. "You wanted to talk to me, sir?"

"Ah, Brenda. I know you're probably wondering why I made you head of the task force for this particular case, but I want you to put an end to your excuses as to why you're unfit for the job." He gave her a sharp glance as she opened her mouth to argue. "Though you're relatively young, you have the brightest mind I have ever seen when it comes to solving cases and you have a good amount of experience in the police and FBI forces that gives you an advantage that the others don't have."

"Sir, with all due respect, I'm only 35 years old. I don't think I am ready for this type of responsibility. Wouldn't it be better to put someone older in charge, someone with more experience in the Pentagon?" Brenda insisted.

Frank chuckled. "I'm afraid not. You'll be just fine, and I'll be here to help out if you need it, though I doubt you will." He moved to leave the room and he paused in the doorway. "Just be sure to keep in mind the small details, sometimes those are the most important."

Brenda sighed and briskly walked to her office, brows furrowed as she considered her talk with Frank. When he had last sat her down in his office and told her she would be placed as head of the next major case, she hadn't thought that she'd get one concerning Al Qaeda.

Though she had years of experience in working cases with both the police and the FBI, she had only been at the Pentagon for a little under five years. Somehow though, she had managed to prove herself to her notoriously difficult-to-please boss, and Frank decided that he was going to bring out her potential- whether she wanted him to or not. Steeling herself, she cracked open the first file atop a large stack and began to pore over the details.

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"_Report_." Pein demanded, his steely, ringed eyes boring into the other members.

"_We have yet to find any evidence of where we are in the Hidden Continent, though from what we've managed to ascertain from passing locals, we are in a place called America_." Itachi expressed, his smooth voice piercing through the tense atmosphere.

"_America...what a strange name_." Kakuzu muttered, his massive frame solid as stone.

"_Keh. Who gives a fuck about where we are? There are plenty of fucking heathens to sacrifice_!" Hidan's voice rang through the room as he stroked the blades of his scythe adoringly with a sadistic grin on his face.

Deidara snorted in wry amusement and was about to make a snide comment, but was abruptly silenced with an impatient glare from his partner.

"_Silence. Go out and find more information about this...America. I expect you to report at this time again tomorrow, now go. Deidara, Sasori, stay for a moment. I have a mission for you_."

Two figures extremely contrasting in height, exchanged glances while the others filed out silently. Once the door clicked behind the last person Leader-sama began, "_I need you two to go out and find an inconspicuous target to take out for intel_."

At that moment, a muffled shout was heard from the corner of the dark room where three bodies were bunched together, interrupting his speech. With an impassive expression, Pein eyed the three before continuing, "_I have a feeling those three will be essentially useless information wise, therefore your mission is imperative. Do not disappoint me_."

"_Yes, Leader-sama_," The gravelly voice of the shorter man rumbled out before gesturing for his partner to follow him out. Right as they were to leave, Pein's blasé voice cut through the quiet darkness, "_Send Itachi in for the interrogation on your way out and inform Zetsu to be prepared to clean up the bodies_."


	2. Symbolic

**A/N: Welcome to the second chapter of Imbroglio! Thank you for continuing to read my humble story and I hope that you like this new chapter!**

**I'd also like to thank my beta Illicium Verum for whipping my story in to shape! I truly appreciate all the work that you've put into making Imbroglio better. **

**~Amai-chan**

**Please note that spoken Japanese is in **_**italics**_** while English is in normal text. **

Chapter 2

Symbology

A piercing screech echoed in a dimly lit room as a middle aged woman clawed at her face, keeping her eyes clenched shut. Blood began to ooze from the gouges her nails left in her once pretty skin and hair clumped on the floor from when she desperately yanked at it moments earlier. Muffled yells followed by a thump sounded from the far wall as the woman's husband desperately tried to come to her rescue, but was thwarted as Kisame halfheartedly pushed him to the floor.

Sighing with annoyance due to the ringing in his ears, Kisame watched as a quick flick of his partner's wrist silenced the woman's incessant screaming forever. Turning, he pulled the man up roughly, ripped out his gag and pushed him to Itachi.

"N-Nancy!" The man's voice cracked as he choked on his tears. "Why are you doing this?"

Impassively, Itachi stared at the man before bluntly asking, "Who your kage? What shinobi country we in?"

The man stared at Itachi with a strange look on his face before stuttering out with false bravado "What the hell are you talking about? Kage? Shinobi? This is America, and our president is Reagan Campbell, if that's what you mean."

"Have you no shinobi?" was all Itachi said in response. The man just blinked in confusion before Itachi clarified, "Ninja- you have ninja?"

Laughing insecurely, the man replied with a tone of disbelief, "Are you yanking my chain? Ninjas? Really?" Seeing the straight, humorless expression on his captor's face, he paled. "You-You're insane! Ninjas don't exist- they're just a child's fantasy!"

Itachi exchanged an unreadable expression with Kisame, who loomed darkly over a small child. Quickly, he flicked a blade from his sleeve, and as he did the man in front of him caught a glint and began to beg for his life. Once again, the noise was silenced swiftly and Itachi flicked the blood off his blade and turned to Kisame who yanked up the terrified child. "_Kisame-San, we have no need for the child. Make it quick._" he ordered in fluent Japanese.

Grumbling about Itachi's bleeding heart, Kisame reached down to the shaking child, and snapped his neck with a sickening crunch. Looking to his partner, he asked in an uninterested tone, "_So there's no ninja here? Leader will be very interested in hearing about this little development._" Glancing down at the lifeless bodies splayed on the floor, he groaned slightly and nudged the man's corpse with his foot. "_I guess there won't be any interesting battles if they're all like these weaklings._"

Itachi shot his partner a disapproving look before heading out the door. "Enough, Kisame-san. Come, we must fill in Leader-sama."

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The familiar hum of summer cicadas blurred together with the irritating buzz of air conditioning as Madison Young lay sprawled on a towel next to the pool. It was well into August, and having nothing better to do, she decided to relax by the pool with her best friend, Kacey Mathews. The two had known each other since they started kindergarten in the same class, and as the years passed, they got closer and closer.

Heaving a sigh, Madison flopped onto her stomach and stared at her peacefully resting friend next to her.

"I'm bored." she declared lackadaisically, resting her cheek against her forearm. Kacey grunted before cracking her eyes open and stared at Madison.

"That sucks." Thinking for a second, Kacey asked, "So what do you think about all those weird attacks that have been on the news lately? It's freaky."

"You have got to be the only teenager I know that watches the news." Madison quipped, "I don't really know what to think about it. All I've heard are bits and pieces of what happened. My mom thinks it's the work of a serial killer."

"Hmm, I've only heard what they've reported on the news, which isn't much. The attacks are all over the DC area. That, plus the bombings in the city. I feel like we're in one of those crazy action films."

"Except we have absolutely nothing to do with the plot. Just tossing that out there," Madison said as she elbowed Kacey's ribs before sitting up to apply another layer of sun block.

"Let's go inside and see what we can find out about this!" Kacey insisted as she leapt up from the ground and stretched out her back energetically.

Madison groaned while smoothing the while lotion over her arms and drawled out, "Do we have to?" She received her answer as Kacey yanked her up and pulled her into the Young's modest two story house. Shivering as the air conditioned air rapidly chilled her sun warmed skin, Madison plopped herself on the couch and flipped open her laptop.

"Maybe we should check if the news is on too? They're bound to have something about it." Kacey suggested as she flopped carelessly onto the couch next to Madison. Madison shrugged and plucked the remote off of the coffee table, flipping on the television in the process. The living room was quickly filled with the sounds of chattering talk show hosts, obnoxious commercials and dialogue from daytime dramas. As she paged through the channels, her eyes lit up and she turned excitedly to Kacey.

"It's a Naruto marathon! Do we have to watch the news? We can just find it online."

Sharing the excitement, Kacey nodded and they settled in for the marathon while Madison pulled up the Internet and started to search for info on the attacks. The room was quiet as they searched online and watched TV.

It was almost an hour into their search when Madison nudged her friend's arm. "Check this out. This blogger says they got a picture of the first murder before the police arrived. Should we look?"

Ignoring her friend's disgusted look, Madison clicked on the link, prompting a large, clear image to pop up on screen.

"Holy hell," was all Madison could say as she and her friend stared at the gruesome picture of a woman who was mutilated beyond recognition.

"God, who would do something like that," Kacey asked horrified, as her eyes drank in the ghastly image.

Madison remained quiet and moved to close the window, but just before she could, her friend stopped her.

"Wait! Madison, look!" Kacey urged her as she pointed at the screen. "Look at the mark she's in the middle of, it looks almost like..." she trailed off as she stared at it more intensely. The picture wasn't taken by a specialist and part of the scene was cut off in the attempt to capture the image of the victim, but there, just along the edges was a lining of blood. It looked like a triangle with the tips touching the inside of a large circle.

"But that can't be what it looks like, can it?" Madison suggested uneasily, looking to her friend.

"I think it is, but that doesn't make any sense." Kacey reasoned as she studied the photo. "Surely there are other symbols that use a triangle within a circle. There's no way that it could possibly be Jashin's symbol. That'd just be ridiculous."

Madison opened her mouth to reply, but the grinding sound of the garage door trickled into the living room announcing the arrival of her dad and younger siblings. Sighing, she moved to close the picture and the blogger's website. Seeing Kacey's questioning expression as she quickly deleted the internet history, she mumbled, "My dad can't stand violence and if he sees that I visited that blog, he'll be on a warpath to child block the internet."

Before anymore conversation could occur, the door to the garage whipped open and her hellish siblings swarmed into the house buzzing with petty arguments like an angry bee hive. Stumbling behind them, Madison's father dumped bags of soccer supplies into the hallway before making his way into the living room to collapse on the overstuffed couch.

Screeching echoed through the house which caused Kacey to cringe and quickly make an excuse to leave. Disgruntled, Madison was left with her exhausted father and her irritating siblings.

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A few days later, Madison was draped across her full sized bed and staring blankly at a wall covered in posters of bands, pictures of family and friends, and a large array of collectable folding fans. Kacey was too busy with babysitting her two younger cousins since her last visit, so Madison was stuck either hanging around the house or meeting up with her other "friends" from school. Considering that her classmates thought that throwing rocks at cars from an overpass was fun, she chose to stay home and find another way to amuse herself. Unfortunately, she seemed to be failing thus far.

Sighing, Madison hauled herself up into a sitting position and brought her laptop up from the floor and into her lap. Powering on her beloved machine, Madison absentmindedly traced the edges of the screen as the welcome page loaded. The laptop had been a gift from the grandma on her mom's side as a reward for winning a contest for the best research paper in her district, which had given her a chance to present it at a college conference.

Madison could remember how proud she had been to get her stern grandmother's approval and cherished the memory she had of the celebration dinner. That had been the week before the family had received the devastating phone call that her grandmother's Alzheimer's had worsened and that she was having trouble remembering even her own daughters. Madison's mother had taken it very hard and in a convoluted way of trying to protect her children from being hurt, she forbade them from seeing their grandmother again.

Breaking free of her thoughts, Madison swiftly typed in her password and brought up the internet. Stalling for a moment to decide what she wanted to look at; Madison tapped her finger lightly on the keyboard. Remembering the blog that she and Kacey had caught a glimpse of days earlier, Madison shrugged and used the search engine to pull it up. Impatiently, she paged through the blogger's incessant posts about the coming of the apocalypse until she came across a series of photos that had been added after the one she had seen days before.

Pausing, she listened carefully to her surroundings to make sure no one had come home during the time she had spent reminiscing. Her father would have a conniption if he found Madison looking at the pictures and she had no doubt that her nosy siblings would tattle on her the moment they got the chance. Hearing nothing but the creaks of her house due to the wind, Madison clicked open the first picture, which was a close up of the woman's hands. Intensely, Madison stared at the knife that looked dangerously similar to kunai.

Suspicious, but not fully convinced, she flipped through a few more photos before she came across one very blurry one. _It must've been taken when the idiot was trying to run from the cops, _Madison pondered, amused. She was about to click on the next photo when a blur of black caught her eye in the upper left hand corner. Squinting, she moved her face as close to the screen as she could get without the image appearing pixilated. Tracing her eyes across the shred of black fabric depicted in the image, she managed to pick out a piece of a red design on the cloth. _No…that's not what I think it is. _Madison tried to convince herself as she eyed the image anxiously. _That has to be a coincidence or maybe it's just a crazed cosplayer who took their role far too seriously. _

Unsettled, Madison shut her laptop abruptly and flung herself face down on her comforter, trying to erase the unorthodox idea that had started to develop in her mind. _I'm not insane. It's just a crazy cosplayer. There's no possible way that it could actually be the Akatsuki. _


	3. Correlations

**A/N: Welcome to chapter three! For those that have read Imbroglio before my massive edit, this contains what was previously chapter 3 and 4. I hope you enjoy this extra long chapter!**

**Please take the time to leave a review at the end; I'm an old fashioned writer who loves getting feedback!**

**~Amai-chan**

Chapter 3

Correlation

Dingy, rustic brick walls surrounded the duo as they stood in the thick shadows of the cramped alleyway. Trash littered the asphalt ground and puddles of grimy water collected in various grooves in the pavement, creating a depressing atmosphere that seemed to permeate the very air.

In front of the pair, however, was a man huddled into the ground, a dazed expression fanning across his face as he stared into space. The man was covered in a layer of dirt and grease from not bathing regularly and he was riddled with needle punctures along his arms that looked regularly abused. The tall blonde of the pair scoffed and kicked the scruffy, homeless man and watched with disdain as the man only slumped further down on the ground, lost in his drug induced stupor.

"We're not going to get anything out of this one, danna. Why don't we just take one of those people, un?" He asked while jabbing his thumb towards the end of the alley where large groups of people bustled past on their way home from work.

"Silence, Deidara. Leader-sama told us to not draw attention to ourselves and whereas Hidan is incapable of following that order, we will do our best to go unnoticed. This man clearly will not be missed, while those people will send out missing people requests to the authorities." The shorter of the men rasped out in a clipped tone. "Grab him, and let's go." He then ordered, turning his back on his partner and walking deeper into the dank alley.

Groaning, Deidara did as he was told and hoisted the filthy man onto his shoulder, scrunching up his nose as the putrid stench of the man's body odor wafted up to him. Hastening his pace, Deidara followed after his partner and melded into the oppressive shadows lining the alley, leaving no trace of their presence behind.

Heaving a weary sigh, Brenda settled into the deliciously comfortable couch in the living room of her apartment. A few seconds later, she felt the couch sink as her husband settled in next to her. Turning, she stared into Richard's inquisitive eyes and couldn't hold back her thoughts anymore. Richard listened patiently as she ranted in her frustration about the lack of correlations and confusing aspects until she fell quiet, stewing over her lack of leads. Pulling her closer to him, he threw his arm over her shoulder and hugged her reassuringly.

"I'm sure you'll get it, honey. Maybe you just need a night off to relax your mind and focus on something else." He suggested gently. He felt her slump against him, and take a deep breath as she curled closer to him.

"You're right, I should just take my mind off it for tonight. Maybe it'll come to me in the morning. How about your day? Any business deals today?" Brenda asked calmly.

Running his free hand through his thick chestnut hair, Richard laughed. "Yeah, actually, there was a pretty big deal with a Chinese technology company today. I had a business lunch with the CEO, Fu-Han, and we signed a $3.5 million manufacturing agreement."

Stunned and impressed, Brenda sat up slightly and smiled up at Richard. "Richard, that's amazing! Congratulations! Maybe we should celebrate this weekend, if you're up to it? We could go to La Bella's. I know how much you love their monte cristo sandwiches."

Grinning at her, Richard agreed before Brenda settled down against him again. Reaching for the remote on the side table next to him, he clicked on the TV, filling the room with the pale glow of the screen light and the sounds of the nightly news.

"_Now let's go to our chief meteorologist, Chad Merrifeild, to get the weather forecast." _The ever perky news anchor directed the audience._ "Yes, thank you Stacey! It's looking to be another dry, hot week in Arlington county, but it seems as if the night time lows are decreasing in rates similar to early fall." _The meteorologist continued to run through the seven day forecast before finally making it to nationwide weather. "_Nationwide, the summer temperatures are pretty average, everywhere, that is except for the DC region." _

The screen focused in on the Doppler radar of the Washington DC area, and the meteorologist started to explain the strange weather activity with an excited expression. _"For the last week or so a storm system has been hovering over the city, without any sign of moving. As of now, we are unsure as to what is causing this odd phenomenon, but the rain is coming down in a constant drizzle with no signs of stopping." _

The camera panned back to the newsroom, focusing on the news anchor as she chatted amicably with the meteorologist. "_Thanks for that wonderful report Chad! Remember to keep an umbrella on hand if you are heading up to the city for the weekend." _

Brenda's brows were knitted together in a confused frown as she mulled over the information the news report gave her. Sensing his wife's troubling track of thoughts, Richard nudged her softly to get her attention. Glancing up at his questioning expression, she smiled to appease him before turning back to the TV set, content with just relaxing.

Richard snatched up the remote and was about to change the channel as the back to school savings special began when the news screen switched to an on-site filming of a reporter outside of the pentagon.

"Wait! Richard, what's going on?" Brenda snapped to attention at the sight of her workplace.

"I'm not sure..." He rumbled leaning forward and staring intently at the screen as he turned the volume up.

The professionally dressed woman on screen began to talk in a calm, reticent manner as she gestured to the building directly behind her, "_We're at the gates of the Pentagon as masses of people gather outside in outrage at the government's withholding of vital information from the people about the recent terrorist attacks." _the woman stated as the camera panned over the hoards of angry and scared people who clustered outside of the Pentagon.

"_Just a short while ago, an anonymous source informed us that the Pentagon has suspected a rouge Al Qaeda branch that has taken root on US soil, rather than the arsonist/serial killer profile that the media was given before. As of yet, we haven't gotten a response from the responsible personnel, but we'll certainly be on top of it when the government sees it fit to respond." _

Filled with abject horror, Brenda stared uncomprehendingly at the screen as the news anchor thanked the reporter while making a witty comment about the situation. Dropping her throbbing head into her hands, she attempted to gain her bearings as her husband shut off the TV and attempted to comfort her.

Just as she lifted her head from her hands to talk to him, she was cut off by the shrill ringing of her cell phone from its place on the breakfast bar. Sighing, she shot her husband an apologetic look before hoisting herself up and plucking her phone up from the counter.

"This is Brenda." She answered curtly as she flipped the phone open.

"Brenda, this is Frank. We need you back down to help contain the information leak to the press. I'm sure you've seen it all over the news by now."

Heaving another weary sigh, she agreed, letting him know she'd be there as quick as possible before hanging up and moving to get ready.

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It was a brief few minutes of hurried walking before Brenda arrived at the primary meeting room, slightly out of breath. With satisfaction, she noted that she wasn't the only one who looked haggard and irritated as she seated herself next to a disgruntled looking Sasha.

Frank stood stiffly at the front of the room, looking on with a frown as the last person came straggling through the door. "As I'm sure you know by now," He started, causing an even deeper silence to fill the room as all attention focused on him. "Just under than an hour ago, a tip was released to the news from an anonymous source that we were withholding vital information about the terrorism case from the public."

He gave a hard stare at some of the force before continuing with his train of thought. "This means, ladies and gentlemen, that we have a leak. Somehow, the public got wind of this crucial information and now panic over another possible 9/11 is rampaging through the streets. Brenda, I will need you to give a statement to the news stations. Our PR representative will brief you on what to say, but we need to assure the public that we are devoted to the safety of the people before all, so we'll need your cooperation."

"Yes, sir." Brenda acknowledged, but though her voice sounded certain, she was panicking over the impending speech she'd be required to give internally. She was not a shy person by any means, but for some reason, public speaking always managed to throw her off and it resulted in a mixed jumble of stumbling and muttering.

The meeting ended with a curt dismissal after Frank had dished out tasks to the remaining people and Brenda tiredly made her way over to the head PR office. She knocked on the closed door briskly and was rewarded with a perky sounding invitation.

"Hey Cindy." Brenda greeted the petite auburn haired woman sitting at the desk in front of her. "Frank sent me over to get briefed for the press conference about the latest incident."

"I've got it all written down right here for you." Cindy replied as she picked up a sheet of paper and handed it to Brenda. "Basically, this is all you need to tell them. In fact, don't tell them anything more than the information I've written on that sheet. That's all that we've been cleared to say."

Brenda grunted in acknowledgement as she scanned the sheet quickly. "Is there anything else I should know?"

Cindy sighed as she responded. "Yeah, the press conference starts in a half an hour. Supposedly, they're setting up the podium and microphones as we speak, but knowing Frank, he's dragging it out as long as possible. That man has always hated nosy reporters."

"Yeah," Brenda scrunched up her nose in distaste. "I could definitely tell by how quickly he pawned the press conference off on me."

With a sigh of resignation, Brenda hustled herself to the bathroom to make sure she didn't look too terrible for the press conference, and thirty minutes later, she found herself standing, illuminated, on the podium in front of tons of reporters.

Closing her eyes briefly, she inhaled deeply as she attempted to calm her nerves and regain her bearings. Snapping her eyes open, she began her speech with a firm tone as she eyed the reporters in the front row.

"Earlier this evening, information had been released that revealed that the pentagon has had a suspicion of Al Qaeda involvement in the recent arson/serial killer case that has plagued the DC metroplex."

She paused to take another deep breath to calm her resurfacing nerves before continuing her report. "It is understood that the public is deeply concerned about an attack similar to September 11th happening again, but we can assure you that the pentagon has all of its forces working towards putting a stop to these vicious murders. In the mean time, we ask that you not panic and try to keep away from largely populated areas as much as possible and to stay away from high risk areas, such as alley ways or poorly lit streets. Thank you for your time."

As Brenda finished her speech with a curt thanks, a deafening roar from the previously quiet mass of reporters began with questions hurled her way. With as much dignity and grace as she could scrounge up, Brenda ignored the demanding reporters and stepped off the stage and to the sidelines where she was met with Cindy and Frank.

Nervously, she looked at them and asked, "So, did I do alright?" Frank looked at her with a strained expression before telling her to meet him in his office in ten minutes before walking off stiffly.

Confused and worried, she turned to Cindy who shrugged as she pressed her carefully painted lips together in a frown.

"Do you need me for anything before I go meet Frank?"

"Nah, good luck though. I have a feeling whatever's got him in a funk isn't going to be pretty." Cindy sympathized.

Worried about her meeting, Brenda made her way to her boss' office in record time. Within minutes, she was seated on the highly uncomfortable designer chair in front of his desk. A minute passed with a drawn out silence hovering in the room as she watched Frank stare at her contemplatively with a slight frown forming on his mustache covered lips.

Just as she was about to break the ice, Frank finally spoke as he rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. "Normally, something of this importance and sensitivity would be above your level of clearance, but I strongly believe you need to know, as you're head of the case. As such, I vouched for you and was granted permission to inform you of this incident, granted you feel you can safely retain the information."

He peered at her questioningly for a second as he finished his statement; in turn, Brenda answered his unfinished question wryly. "Sir, I wouldn't work at the pentagon if I couldn't keep information to myself."

"I figured as much, but I'm required to give you a warning beforehand." Frank snorted before continuing with a frighteningly serious expression. "The information leaked earlier didn't just include our suspicions of Al Qaeda involvement, but also the country suspected of supplying the rouge branch."

Brenda's face tightened and she stiffened in worry as he continued her briefing. "Naturally, this incident went viral, and within an hour, the President received intelligence of a potential threat of attack from Yemen, the suspected country. We may be on the brink of war."

Frank assessed her expression as she silently digested the crucial information she just received. "Sir," she began hesitantly, "Perhaps one of the more senior officers should take lead on this case. Our national security rests on this investigation; I don't think I'm fit for this."

"I understand that this has turned out to be a, well, a cluster fuck of a case- to put it bluntly." He admitted to her, "I need you to continue to head this case for me though."

Seeing her lips part in protest, he hurried to cut her off. "This needs to stay between us, but I'm sure that it's one of the senior members that's the leak. You've got more experience than any of the others that've been cleared, and I believe you have a lot of potential to move up- maybe even to the top."

Flattered, Brenda stayed silent and relaxed a bit in the unyielding chair on which she was perched. "Well, now that everything is settled for now, go ahead and head home for the night and take tomorrow off. You could use a three day weekend."

As if snapping out of a trance, Brenda felt the heavy burden of exhaustion and stress weigh down on her and she sluggishly said her goodbyes, grabbed her purse and headed for her car. _Maybe I'll get some rest this weekend._


	4. Anxiety

**A/N: Here is chapter 4 (which was previously chapter 5). I promise that the Akatsuki will finally meet up with one of the OCs in the next chapter. I tried to incorporate them as much as possible while building up the back story, so chapter 5 is when things will heat up. Let's just say it's going to be explosive! ;D Please take the time to leave a review at the end; I'm an old fashioned writer who loves getting feedback!**

**I hope you enjoy!**

**~Amai-chan**

Chapter 4

Anxiety

If Madison had known that researching the series of murders would have led to her panicking and watching her back at every turn, she never would have given in to Kacey's demands. Currently, she was curled into the corner of the overstuffed couch, watching the late night news with her dad as her devilish siblings started a turf war upstairs with her mom.

Marco sighed, irritated, as he turned the volume up over the screeches originating from the second story and Madison looked over at him with a frown. "Dad, do you think we should help her?"

Running a hand through his course black hair, he answered with a wry chuckle. "Nope. She said she wanted to handle bedtime by herself, and was adamant that we stay out of her way."

"Why?" Madison asked bluntly, "She never does bedtime; she's almost always at campaign events in the evening."

"Don't ask me. She's been on a home-making warpath since she read that Ms. Manners advice book." Marco answered with a small cringe. "I really should have chucked that book when she wasn't looking. Your Grandmother gave it to her last Christmas as an unsubtle hint and Avery has been determined to show her up since."

Madison groaned slightly, knowing her mother's highly competitive streak. "Is that why she attempted to make that dreadful casserole a couple nights ago? I felt like I was eating prison slop." She received a playful smack to the back of the head while her dad chuckled heartily.

"Careful, or I'll tell her that the casserole is your favorite dish!" He jested with a teasing smile.

"Daaaddd!" Madison whined, but as she started to speak again, she was cut off by a piercing scream from a tantrum throwing child and a desperate call for help from upstairs. Taking that as his cue to leave, Marco launched himself off the couch and up the stairs to assist his harrowed wife, leaving Madison on the couch alone.

Heaving a sigh, she turned back to the neglected television right as the screen switched to a scene in a press room. Bored, and desperate to find a way to distract herself, Madison stared intently at the screen as a tall, chestnut haired woman in a wine colored skirt suit stepped behind the podium.

Madison snapped to avid attention as she recognized her normally reserved aunt, Brenda Faling, make a short speech to the gathered reporters before walking off stage. Belatedly, Madison registered that her aunt had said absolutely nothing of value about the terrorism case, and a deep frown creased her pallid face in thought.

Was it possible that her aunt hadn't noticed the theme among the murders? Maybe it really was the work of Al Qaeda factions like they suggested, but why didn't they say more about the case?

Ever since that bland afternoon a few days ago, when Madison and Kacey found that crime scene photo, she had been obsessively pouring over the various Naruto volumes that she owned and tying the murders and bombings to each fact she scrounged up. While the theory matched the scenario perfectly, it was unbelievable. What sane person would believe that fictional characters were doing this? It wasn't as if she could have gone to the police and told them; they'd laugh heartily and send the poor, mentally ill child on her way. That wasn't necessarily the ending she wanted.

Then again, maybe she was just over thinking things again, as she was prone to do on occasion. Just as soon as the nagging thought appeared, Madison ruthlessly squashed it down. There's no way it could be anything else. Sure, the murders could have been done by any mentally disturbed person and the bombings were possible to recreate, but nothing could explain the constant rain that hovered over Washington DC. At first glance, it just seemed like a strange weather phenomenon, like a weird El Niño year, so she passed it off as nothing. It wasn't until her mom had mentioned the odd weather in passing during breakfast one morning that she decided to look into it.

After investigating the barometric recordings and tracking the warm and cold fronts online, she realized that there was absolutely no reason or explanation for the constant rain hovering over the neighboring city, not to mention the fact that it didn't move with the wind like a normal storm. It was as if it was anchored to something in the city, and that something, Madison suspected, was Pein.

How would she find Pein or better yet, what would she do if she found him? Its not like she could whip out some super awesome jutsu to send them home; she could try, but with her chakra-less existence, it'd make for a pitiable sight. Besides, chances are he'd kill and/or interrogate her on sight. As much as she adored watching them on TV and reading about them, there wasn't a chance in Hell that she'd wish to be in their company. That was a one way ticket to becoming worm food.

Still, despite all of the logical reasons for not following her gut, there was niggling thought that wouldn't leave her alone. It pushed her to see if her deductions were true- maybe she was completely off? She would never know if she didn't pursue it herself, and if there was one thing Madison hated, it was not knowing.

Pursing her lips together, she snatched up her cellphone, ready to text Kacey with her plans to search the city. Screw all her pessimistic thoughts- she'd scour the city to prove her theory until her feet bled, damned be the consequences.

_Earlier the same night:_

The large, lumbering form of a blue skinned man lounged on a long, plush couch, ignoring the perky tittering of the well dressed woman on the illuminated television screen. Rolling his head back to look at the pop-corned ceiling, he rumbled out to the quiet figure situated on a nearby leather armchair.

"Itachi-san, when did Leader-sama want us to investigate the so-called White House? I feel lazy waiting here for Deidara and Sasori to get back with our new information source."

Looking up from the newspaper he was perusing, Itachi answered him with a slight reprimand. "Patience, Kisame-san. We will be investigating the White House tomorrow morning, as soon as we gain more information about this new country. The family that lived here was not very well informed. We need more intel."

Heaving a sigh, Kisame turned back to the TV screen as it panned back out to a suit wearing, middle aged man who sat behind the news desk. Interest perked as the headline scrolled past the screen, he cranked up the volume so it filled the eerily quiet house with the voice of the anchor, earning a slight glare from the once-peacefully reading Itachi.

_"Just over an hour ago, an anonymous source from the Pentagon informed the press that the recent string of murders and arson was not, in fact, suspected to be the work of a deranged serial killer, but rather the work of a terrorist branch of Al Qaeda. Public outrage over the blatant lies the Pentagon has fed the media has spiked into a growing hoard of citizens outside the gates of the Pentagon." _

As the man presented the news, video of the growing crowd was displayed on screen while various people at the gates were interviewed by a professionally dressed reporter. Once the screen focused back on the middle aged anchor, he mentioned the response of the Pentagon personnel and aired the clip of the brief press conference.

A moment of silence filled the room once Kisame shut the television off and he turned to Itachi. "Well, it seems like neither Hidan nor Deidara have been covering up their fun. Leader-sama won't be pleased, though he will be interested in this Al Qaeda group."

Only humming in slight acknowledgement of his partner's observation, Itachi rose and headed down a darkly lit hallway, followed closely by Kisame to inform their leader of this new development.


	5. Incendiary

**A/N: As I promised, the first meeting of my darling OC and one of the Akatsuki! I hope that you'll enjoy reading this chapter as much as I like writing it. Please take the time to leave a review at the end; I'm an old fashioned writer who loves getting feedback!**

**Thanks!**

**~Amai-chan**

Chapter 5

Incendiary

Tall, glass faceted buildings loomed overhead as Richard weaved through the Saturday afternoon traffic in downtown Washington DC. As was typical, the roads seemed more like parking lots and swarms of tourists crowded the sidewalks as they made their way towards iconic landmarks. Brenda sighed as her husband slammed on the breaks and cursed heartily as another pedestrian traipsed into the road in front of their car.

"Honey, maybe we should take a side street. I'm sure it will be less crowded." She suggested gently to her frustrated husband.

"No," Richard ground out, "I've got this." Brenda glanced out the window and sighed with relief as the old fashioned building containing La Bella's came into view. They continued down for a couple blocks to a parking garage and then wandered down to join the crowds on the sidewalks.

As the news reported, rain was pouring down in buckets over the hapless citizens as they scurried about the bustling streets. Grateful for her husband's insight, Brenda popped open the umbrella he handed her as they exited into the rain. The street they walked along trailed the United States Congressional building and various other landmarks, so Brenda took the time to study the towering structures that contained her country's legislative branch.

It was due to her vigilant studying that she noted something oddly shaped hovering above the Senate wing. Stopping dead in her tracks, she squinted around the sheets of rain to try and make out the strange figure. Was that a man on top of a bird? She moved to step closer without breaking her gaze but a hand clenched her upper arm and yanked her back as a yellow cab sped through where she had just been about to step.

"Oh God!" She gasped out, heart pounding as she realized what could've happened. Turning, she clutched her hand over her heart and looked up at her worried husband.

"What were you doing?" He almost yelled. "I thought you were going to be killed!" His face was pale and he pulled her into a tight hug. They stood, embraced for maybe a minute before a man shoved past them rudely, muttering under his breath.

Suddenly remembering what she was doing before her near death experience, Brenda's head snapped back to the sky above the Congressional building. Nothing.

"Babe, what is it?" Richard asked concerned about his distracted wife. Without looking at him, she answered while scanning the skies. "It's...nothing. I just thought I saw something weird."

Wrapping his arm around his wife's tense shoulders, Richard started to guide her back on the route to La Bella's when a deafening boom rattled through the air. The blast wave threw them to the ground, where they huddled in protection from the flying debris.

For a few terrifying seconds Brenda could only hear a shrill ringing in her ear. Something warm was trickling down her forehead, and when she reached up with a trembling hand, she cringed as she brushed a deep gash.

As she stared at the crimson smear on her fingers, she heard a muffled sound that grew louder and louder. "...enda! Brenda!" Richard's voice rung loud and clear. Looking around after she snapped out of her daze, she noted that the plentiful pedestrians that once crowded the sidewalks were scattered across the wet pavement, some not moving.

"Shit," Richard cursed while pulling his wife up to her feet "Are you okay? We need to get somewhere safe! Can you walk?"

Brenda steadied herself using his shoulder before answering, "I'm fine, are you alright?" Seeing his nod, she sighed in relief before staring at the cloud of dust and debris that hovered over the once grandiose Congressional building. "Richard, we need to go check for survivors. What if someone is trapped?"

"Brenda, no." Richard looked at her seriously. "That's putting ourselves at risk, and for what? Look at the building! Nobody could have survived that blast."

"Richard, I'm serious. If you won't go, then I will." Brenda said crisply as she started to jog across the street and into the billowing cloud of materials. Ignoring his calls after her, she weaved around piles of rubble, muddy puddles and trees on the lookout for any bodies through the rain and haze.

For once, she was grateful for the pouring rain as most people avoided loitering on the expansive lawn surrounding the massive building. She hadn't come across a single person yet, and she was just coming up to the expansive stairway leading into the blown up building.

The haze was so thick at that point that Brenda could hardly make out five feet in front of her, but just a bit ahead she could hear a voice. It sounded male, probably young, but she couldn't see him.

"Hello?" She called, unsure. "Is there someone there? Do you need help?" She waited to hear if someone responded, but the voice had stopped. All she could hear around her was the pitter patter of the rain on pavement; she decided to walk a bit ahead to see if the man was there.

She took but a few steps before she was stopped by a smooth male voice with just a hint of an accent echoing from behind her. "Leaving so soon, un? You just called me over!"

Brenda whipped around and stumbled back slightly when she came face to with a tall, smirking man. "Good Lord! Where did you come from? I could have sworn..." She trailed off as she uneasily studied the man in front of her. He seemed ordinary enough despite his odd ensemble which consisted of a long black coat dotted with red clouds, strange open toed shoes, and leg warmers. Despite this, Brenda got a strange vibe off of him that curled in the pit of her stomach, like a warning to flee.

Shoving the feeling to the back of her mind, she asked him carefully while maintaining a safe distance. "Are you hurt?" His strange smile widened a bit as he stepped closer to her and watched with a hint of satisfaction as she scooted back slightly.

"Don't you worry about me, I'm perfect." He drawled as he studied her guarded expression. Something about the woman seemed familiar; maybe it was the similarity to his long dead sensei from Iwa.

"Good. My name is Brenda Faling; I work for the Pentagon. Did you see anything suspicious around here before the bombing? Maybe someone who looked nervous or maybe an unmarked package perhaps?" She questioned him quickly, before being cut off by his laughter.

"Wasn't it beautiful? It was one of my best works of art, after all!" He questioned her jovially. Brenda could only stare in disbelief before choking out. "This was you? You bombed the Congressional building?"

"Of course." He scoffed, as though offended she would think otherwise. "Who else would've done it this well? Not Sasori-Danna- he has no sense of the fleeting nature of true art."

Desperately, Brenda reached to her side for the gun she kept on hand, but cringed as she met air. Why did she think it was a good idea to leave it at home? Perhaps if she could just inch her way past him... Her train of thought was cut off abruptly as the man suddenly snapped his fingers together, as though remembering, and drawled out "Ah, I knew you looked familiar! Brenda Faling- number one on Leader-Sama's list. Unfortunately, you won't become one of my art pieces today- he ordered you alive and unscathed. How unfortunate. Looks like you'll be coming with me."

"Oh, hell no." She began to utter as she pivoted to run away, but was cut off by a sharp pinch to her neck- then everything went black. Catching the unconscious woman in his arm and tossing her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, Deidara reached into clay pouch and quickly molded a bird to fly them out of the area.


	6. Gumption

**A/N: Here's chapter 6! For those of you who are returning, I ask that you please go back and read chapter 5, which is entitled Incendiary. Chapter five is completely new material, so in order to get the gist of what's happening in this chapter, you'll need to read that one first. The reason the order is messed up is because I combined chapters 3 and 4 into one, so that the story would flow better. I apologize for any confusion it may cause. **

**The contents of this chapter are a bit dark, so if you happen to not like reading that type of stuff, you may not want to read this. The story is just flowing out of me at this point, so you can probably expect chapter 7 within a week or so. I hope that you enjoy this chapter and please, take the time to leave a review at the end. I'm an old fashioned writer, so I enjoy getting feedback, whether it is compliments or constructive criticism. Thanks!**

**-Amai-chan**

Chapter 6

Gumption

"Hey Maddy, you sure you remembered that taser?" Kacey whispered to her jacket clad friend. If one were to look at the two teenage girls wandering through the graffiti and filth lined alleyways of Washington DC, they'd assume that they were lost or confused. That, however, was not the case. Madison marched down streets and alleyways with a goal in mind- she was going to find Pein's hideout.

It had been a few hours since they had started their seemingly futile search and the rain had not let up at all, leaving the two drenched despite their protective wear. So far, the most interesting things they had come across were sleeping hoboes, unamused prostitutes, and tons of garbage lying around.

Madison heaved a sigh as they exited an alleyway onto a bustling street lined with various cafes, stores, and bars. "Maybe we should stop for a bit to dry off and get something to eat." She suggested to Kacey, who nodded with a relieved look on her face.

Hastily, they made their way into a close by cafe and ordered a quick sandwich before plopping down at a table near the windows at the street front. For a few moments they ate in silence, but Kacey couldn't hold back what was plaguing her any longer.

"Maddy, I know you want to find them, and I totally agree," she added hastily as she saw her friend's expression turn sour, "but do you have an actual plan? We've been wandering around the city all morning under the guise of going to a movie then lunch. We don't have that much time, and we still haven't found anything."

Madison sighed as she ran a hand through her shoulder length light brown hair. "I just know they're somewhere around here; there's no other reason for the constant rain, Kacey! He's got to be in DC somewhere."

"Yeah, the key is _somewhere _in DC. The city is massive; it's impossible to check every nook and cranny!" Kacey defended ardently.

There was a minute of pregnant silence while Madison and Kacey held a stony gaze before Madison slumped down in her chair. "I know, but I feel like we're so close." Kacey nodded in understanding of her friend's frustration, feeling the same at that point, but having to concede to logic. "How about we finish our lunches then search for another hour." She suggested calmly. "If we don't find anything by the end, then we'll head home."

Mulling it over, Madison nodded while picking up the remains of her half eaten sandwich. It wasn't more than a second later that a loud boom rattled the window panes and shook the floor. Stifling a reflexive scream at the sudden noise, Madison shot out of her chair, almost in synch with Kacey and ran outside to find the source. There, hovering a few blocks over, was a large cloud of debris.

"Oh my..." Kacey trailed off as she stared at the huge mass. Madison gaped openly while people around them shoved past them as they began to panic. "Where is that coming from? What's in that area?" Madison finally stuttered out. A siren started wailing in the distance and shouts of scared people almost blocked out Kacey's answer, but Madison heard it like it was a glass shattering in a silent room. "That's near the House of Congress."

"Do you think...?" She didn't have to finish because Kacey nodded silently with a grim expression. A stiff silence settled between the two as they watched frantic parents, spooked adults, and confused children rush past in a jumble.

Speaking up, Madison turned to Kacey, who's pale face was drenched with the rain. "If that's who I think it is, he's probably enjoying the chaos at the scene." Understanding her friend's unsaid indication, Kacey started walking down the street, closely followed by Madison.

They made it down about a block before they came across police setting up a blockade right in the way of their path. Seeing an unattended alleyway to their right, Kacey nudged her friend in the right direction and they slipped unnoticed into the shadow lined space.

Like any other alley in DC, the one they were traversing was filthy and covered in trash. The difference was that the one they had managed to slink into was connected to a series of other small passages that seemingly led to nowhere. Cursing under her breath, Kacey led the way deeper and deeper into the urban labyrinth with Madison close behind.

It was ten minutes into their fruitless navigation that Madison groaned in despair "We're lost!" They both stopped walking and stood together in the pouring rain with dejected expressions; suddenly, Madison's head perked up as she heard a faint sound deeper in the alleyways. She exchanged a glance with Kacey, who'd also heard the sound and they crept down the narrow corridor to get closer.

As they got closer and closer, Madison could distinctly recognize the sound as moans of agony and shrill begging for some unseen person to stop. Her face took on a greenish pallor as a sickening crunch sounded, but the chilling laugh that followed bounced off the claustrophobic walls and rammed into her ears with the force of a bullet.

Shifting uneasily, Madison slunk further down until she was about a yard away from the corner into the victim's alley. By that point, her stomach was churning from the horrifying sounds of the poor victim's suffering that grew louder and louder as they advanced. Unable to shake the fear that curled and twisted down her spine, Madison halted her advancement and just listened to the noises coming from the passage in front of her.

Just when the moans and shrieks were becoming too much, a gravelly voice rumbled out irritated, "Hidan, hurry up. We can't spend all day on you playing around with your toys."

The squelches and crunches abruptly halted as an annoyed voice growled back, "This is not 'playing around' you bastard!" His tone grew fanatical as he next said "I'm giving this great offering to Jashin-sama. Just listen to this bitch's screams; he'll love this shit!"

Gaining courage by knowing who was in the next alley, Madison slid against the dingy wall until she could ever-so-slightly peek around the corner. Eyes widening at the horrible scene on display in front of her, she could barely hold back her shocked gasp as she ducked her head behind the safety of the wall.

The woman, if she could still even be called that, was mutilated beyond even psychopathic standards. Her hands were stabbed straight through into the pavement on both sides of her body, the once smooth skin of her legs was shredded into macabre ribbons, and worst of all, her torso was ripped open with the entrails on fine display as she lay in Jashin's bloody symbol. Hidan, as expected, was nearby the whimpering body, positively coated in blood as he glared over at his hulking partner.

She didn't know why she was so surprised; it wasn't necessarily a hidden fact that Hidan makes a ridiculous amount of human sacrifices to Jashin. Though the sheer sadism and extent of the brutality of the act wasn't necessarily something that registered as she religiously watched each episode. Then again, things seem infinitely more real when you are subjected to it in person.

Barely registering Kacey's frantic tugs on her arm, Madison stood, slumped against the grime caked walls and tried to process what she'd just witnessed. Over her frantic thoughts, she could hear the argument between Hidan and Kakuzu begin to escalate.

"Fuck," Hidan swore viciously, "just let me finish the ritual then we can go." He then went on to loudly complain, "The blond brat gets to have all his fun and here I am getting rushed through my religious duties."

The whimpers of the agonized victim still filled the air, but with a wet sounding squelch, it all stopped and the only sound was the murmur of Hidan's prayers and the falling rain. It didn't take a genius to piece together what happened. Nauseously, Madison clutched her shaking hand over her mouth, but not fast enough to silence the loud retch she made.

Horrified, she snapped her head around to look at Kacey, who looked as if all the blood had drained out of her face. It was then that they registered that all noise had stopped in the adjacent alley; frantically, they turned to run, but the sight of the grinning, blood drenched Hidan right in their path stopped them in their tracks.

His violet eyes danced with a malicious, pleased glint and he glanced over their shoulder with a twisted smile. "Heh, look what we've got here, Kakuzu! Little spies."

"Shut up, Hidan." The older man grunted. "Kill them quickly. We need to head back to base; that idiot, Deidara, supposedly found the pentagon woman." Kakuzu turned and started to walk back the way they came when Kacey's frantic voice called after him.

"Wait! You're going back to Pein, right?" Seeing his slight pause at her words, she hastily continued, "We have information- stuff that Pein would be very interested in. If you kill us, he'll never get that intel." Kacey bluffed with a quiver in her voice. Of course, they could just drop into any bookstore and buy copies of the manga to get the same information, but she sure as hell wasn't going to be the one to tell them.

There was a brief lull where Kacey was almost sure that her plea hadn't worked and they were to be slaughtered like pigs in the middle of a nasty alley, but Kakuzu's irritated voice erased her doubts. "Hidan, knock them out and let's go."

Hidan opened his mouth to protest, but was cut off by the extremely dark look that was shot his way. Annoyed, he quickly knocked them out with more force than necessary and watched as they slumped into heaps on the filthy ground. Kakuzu shot his threads out to encircle Madison and Kacey's bodies and started to walk deeper into the urban labyrinth- hostages and partner in tow.


	7. Intrepid

**A/N: Hello my wonderful readers! Here's chapter 7 and the introduction of Tobi! Yay! Now, I will admit that I'm not much of a fan of how Naruto has continued as of late, so I may or may not make Tobi as Obito instead of Madara. It all depends of how the story flows, but I'm most likely going to go with Madara, because I favor his character more. If anyone has a protest to that, please don't hesitate to PM me, and we can talk about it. I promise I don't bite :) **

**I want to give a special shout out to these lovely readers who have favorited, followed, and/or reviewed Imbroglio: AkatsukiRebel, Gin-Sempai, Hurlstien, Midnighter67, Shi No Kitsune, daydreamer1008, killerwolfy1, narutofan'tilI'die, LossXLove, Mr. Jay black, and SleepiPanda**

**You guys are the best!**

**Please, please, please take the time to review! I'm an old fashioned writer who thrives on feedback, so I'd love to hear what you think!**

**Thanks and I hope you like this chapter! **

Chapter 7

Intrepid

A fierce throbbing pain wreaked havoc on her senses as Brenda lethargically awoke. Slowly, her mind adjusted to being conscious again and as she became more aware of herself, she realized that she was tied down tightly to something and cloth was shoved in her mouth to silence her.

At that realization, Brenda's eyes snapped open, and in the dim lighting, she drank in the scant details of her surroundings. Panic coursed its way through her body as the memories of the insane blond bomber drifted to the forefront of her mind. _God, I must be in their hideout. _She deduced with a nauseous lurch in her stomach and as she let that thought flash through her mind, the nondescript door in the corner of the room burst open as a figure darted in.

Through the thick shadows of the room, Brenda could just barely make out his tall, lean figure before he practically skipped to the center of the room where she was perched. Tensing up, she stared askance at him and prepared for the inevitable interrogation. All he did though was remove her gag with over dramatic flourish and tossed it behind him as he got uncomfortably close to her face.

"Hi! What's your name?" The man asked enthusiastically, startling Brenda.

Shocked and confused, she just stared at him silently, gauging the man in front of her. Ignoring her prolonged silence, the man continued to talk. "Tobi's name is Tobi! Do you like the color orange? Tobi loves the color orange!"

Brenda noted with bewilderment that the man- Tobi -pranced about the room as if he was a kid in a candy store. His high pitched voice rung throughout the room as he chattered about random things; the wonders of orange; delicious cookies; and pretty daisies.

Quietly, she observed him while he flapped his arms about as he described a terribly interesting butterfly he'd spotted while on a so-called mission. Despite the fact that the man seemed to contain the mind of a kindergartener and that he hadn't touched her, Brenda felt that there was just something off about this Tobi.

Sure, he seemed relatively normal, despite the rambling, residence in a terrorist's hideout, and the reference to himself in third person point of view, but she just knew there was something wrong with him. It was like he wasn't honest about the persona he presented. It seemed fake. _Not that I should be surprised. _Brenda thought bitterly. _He is a part of this terrorist cell. _

Realizing that she had tuned out the last five minutes of his incessant talking, Brenda snapped to attention as Tobi finished an enlightening story about baking cupcakes. To her annoyance, he just continued on, but she became interested as he began to talk about some...Deidara. The name was terribly foreign and Brenda desperately tried to place it to a dialect. No such luck. She supposed that it didn't help that she had only studied Spanish for two years in high school, and nothing else.

"...then Sempai was so mean to Tobi! He tried to blow Tobi up when all Tobi wanted to do was help decorate his room!"

_Blow up? _With a jolt, Brenda realized that the man Tobi was rambling about was the blond terrorist who had kidnapped her the other day. _Or maybe it's another one of the terrorists. We don't know how many there are. There might be another arsonist in the group. _Annoyed with her lack of information, she continued to listen to him, but he had turned back to another inane topic.

Deciding that he most likely wouldn't hurt her for talking, Brenda licked her dry lips and forced out a question with a hoarse voice. "Why am I here?"

It was obvious that he heard her because he paused in his storytelling for a split second before completely ignoring her question and rambled on as if she hadn't spoken at all. Slightly irritated, Brenda shifted uncomfortably in the tight binds that held her to the chair. While she was fiddling with her bonds, Brenda noted that things went very quiet and cautiously she glanced up only to let out a panicked shriek as he lunged at her.

In her anxiety at his lurch, she had clenched her eyes tightly shut and waited for the impact. For a few seconds, nothing happened before she heard a light sniffling. Snapping her head up as the sniffling progressively got louder, Brenda stared in disbelief at Tobi, who turned his back to her and was sobbing in the corner.

_What in the seven layers of Hell? _Brenda could only think as she watched the man's shoulders heave under his obscenely loud sobs. _I scream because he lunged at me, but HE'S the one crying? _It made no sense at all, but as Tobi continued to cry in the corner, Brenda felt a pang of minute guilt.

Sure, he was a childish, possibly mentally ill terrorist who kept her captive in some dingy room, but Brenda was an overly empathetic person. She teared up during hallmark movies and flat out bawled during those guilt inducing SPCA commercials for God's sake. If there was one thing that'd make her feel like a horrible person, it was watching someone cry because of something she caused.

Conflicted, she opened her mouth to speak only to shut it multiple times indecisively before she finally couldn't take the crying any longer and called out to him. "Hey, I didn't mean to startle you. I'm sorry."

Immediately, like a switch had been flipped, he was back to frolicking around and talking. Annoyed, Brenda realized that he had duped her into thinking that she really had made him cry. _At least it's better than his crying. _She admitted begrudgingly to herself.

Suddenly, she felt a gloved hand stroke her hair, causing Brenda to flinch away, but the hand just followed. Tobi talked loudly about how pretty her hair was and how she should tie it up like his 'Sempai'. Brenda hardly paid attention to his chattering, as the only thing she could focus on was the ire building up inside her.

Shaking her head roughly to move his hand, she barked out angrily. "Knock it off! Get your hands off of me!"

She would have continued her commands if the hands that once softly stroked her hair didn't grasp a large chunk of it and pulled her head back painfully, bringing tears to her eyes. Desperately she tried to dislodge his hand from her hair, but he only pulled firmer in response. The strange orange mask appeared in front of her taut face and he used his free hand to wag his finger condescendingly.

"That's not very polite." His voice was so much deeper than before and held a gravelly quality to it that made Brenda flinch in horror. She renewed her struggles at his abrupt change, only leading to a throaty chuckle that reminded Brenda of a fox that had the rabbit right where he wanted it.

"Who _are _you?" She finally managed to choke out as the pain became too much to struggle against. "And what do you want from me?"

He chuckled darkly, clearly amused by her plight. "Oh, don't worry, Brenda Faling. We'll have plenty of time for questions later." With that comment he released her sore scalp and patted her on the head like one would an obedient dog or a small child.

"Rest up! I'm gonna go play with Maddy!" As he finished the sentence, his voice went back into the high pitched, boyish tone from before.

The slamming of the door after Tobi's departure did nothing to snap Brenda out of the horrified trance she went into upon hearing her beloved niece's name mentioned by the clearly insane man.


	8. Fabricate

**A/N: Hello my precious readers! I'm so sorry about how long it has taken me to get this chapter out! I've had some pretty major health problems lately, and for some reason, I've had a terrible case of writer's block. Anyway, here's chapter 8! I'm not entirely happy with it, and I suspect I'll be going back and adjusting it later on, but this is the best I could get it for now. **

**I'd like to give a special thanks to these readers, who have either reviewed, favorited, and/or followed Imbroglio: AkatsukiRebel, Cataquack Warrior, Gin-Sempai, Hurlstien, Midnighter67, Shi No Kitsune, daydreamer1008, killerwolfy1, narutofan'til'I'die, LossXLove, Mr. Jay black, and SleepiPanda. **

**You guys are the best!**

**And lastly, please, please, please review! I love that you all take the time to put me on your favorites and alert lists, but I'm an old fashioned writer who adores getting feedback. You'll make my day if you leave a review and you'll get on the hall of fame above, so I'm asking that you take a few minutes to let me know how I'm doing. I appreciate all feedback; even if they're constructive criticisms, so please, don't be shy! **

**Thanks again!**

**Amai-chan**

Chapter 8

Fabricate

A frantic sounding whisper came into focus as Madison awoke from her forced slumber. It did not take long to place exactly what had happened to her, and as she regained total realization, her eyes cracked open and she shifted her stiff neck up so she could survey her surroundings. As she expected, she was tied tightly to an uncomfortable chair in an empty, dull room; however, what she didn't expect was that they had put her in the same room as Kacey and left them free to talk.

"Kacey?" Madison's raspy voice called out to her panicked friend. Kacey whipped her head towards Madison and sighed with relief. "Maddy! Oh god, you were out for so long I thought that Hidan might've done some permanent damage!"

Madison grumbled in response as a throbbing in her limbs hinted towards extensive bruising. "What the hell did they do while we were asleep? I feel like they tossed us in front of a bus before taking us here."

Kacey shrugged the best she could around the tight bonds. "I have no idea, but Maddy, we need to figure out what to do. What are we going to tell them? I don't know that much-" As she was talking, the door creaked open, the shrill noise ringing throughout the room. Alarmed, both girls snapped their heads in the direction of the door and watched with anticipation as a figure stepped inside gaily.

A deep pool of dread and disbelief welled up inside Madison as she stared at the lithe figure dressed in black with an orange mask. Of all the possible members that could've dropped in, it just had to be _him_. Every last one of the members of Akatsuki were terrifying and all around freaky in their own way, but Madara took the cake in Madison's mind.

Sure, his persona as Tobi seemed pleasant, welcoming even, but she knew better. In ordinary circumstances, having knowledge of one's enemy is a good thing; unfortunately, this was no ordinary situation. Frantically, Madison ran through all the possible scenarios in her head of how to slide by without revealing how much they knew, and none of them ended well. Madison realized with a sinking feeling that Kacey hadn't gotten far enough into the series to know who Madara was. In fact, Kacey only really knew the gist of the first half of Naruto and some snippets of Shippuden. That made any preemptive measures extremely difficult. If only they'd had time to create a plan before he waltzed in.

Troubled, Madison tried to warn Kacey to be wary with a look in her direction, but her friend was too focused on the flamboyant man to notice. Vocalizing anything would be asking for suspicion, she realized dejectedly, so she decided to see how it played out. After all, how terrible could it go?

Apparently, catastrophic would be the right description, Madison realized within minutes. Madara kept up his Tobi facade quite well as he jabbered on about random subjects and flounced about the room energetically. It didn't take long for her outgoing friend to fall for his act and offer answers to his "innocent" questions. Inwardly, Madison was cringing at how easily her best friend was duped by the manipulative mastermind, but refrained from interrupting in hope that their conversation would stick to small talk. Such a wish was apparently too much to ask, because in the next minute, Kacey not only let slip a crucial piece of information, but Madara chose to reveal his true colors.

"Tobi wants to know what Kacey likes to do! Tobi loves baking and helping Zetsu-San in the garden!" He gushed happily to Kacey's seated form.

Giggling at the hyper man's comment, Kacey responded almost cheerily, as if she wasn't being held hostage by a bunch of terrorists. "I love baking too! I also like sketching and reading about Naruto! I especially-" As if sensing the change in Tobi's demeanor, Kacey stopped, then paled dramatically when she realized what she had let slip during her rambling.

"Now, do go on." A sinister voice chuckled out from Tobi as his once-happy presence suddenly seemed imposing- suffocating even. "I would just _love_ to hear about this reading you like. I'm curious. What information have you ascertained about the Kyuubi boy?"

The silence that followed his question was thick, and Madison knew that Kacey had no idea what to say, so she cut in, hoping that her lie would be believable enough. "We, uh, just know the basic information. You're legends from our history lessons. That's why we knew who to look for during the attacks." The pitiful lie came out strained, and Madison groaned internally at her less than stellar lying abilities.

Madara grunted in disbelief before asking. "Really now? And how, pray tell, are we legends?"

Licking her lips nervously, Madison opened her mouth and prepared to weave a web of lies to the homicidal man in front of her. "We really just learned about the Akatsuki and how the group aspired to use the tailed beasts to take over the world. It's something we learned about at school." She trailed off uncertainly.

Madara was silent for a few moments, seemingly processing the information before musing aloud. "Valuable information, indeed." Madison was more than happy to stay quiet and leave him to his own musings, but Kacey interjected nervously. "Uh, Tobi? I think we need medical help. Madison was out a lot longer than I was and I'm worried she might have a head injury. Please, could you let us see a doctor?"

The overwhelming urge to smack some sense into her clearly delusional friend was cut off by Madara's surprising answer. He seemed to study them closely from behind his mask before replying. "It would be a shame to have either of you die so soon; I'll have someone sent in to conduct an examination. Be aware- if I find any inkling that either of you are lying, not only will I kill you both slowly, but I'll also hunt down each and every one of your family members and rip them apart- piece by tiny piece." With that pleasant note, he strutted out of the room with a skip in his step, leaving two, extremely nervous hostages behind.

The weight of the threat Madara issued to them settled like an oppressive weight upon Madison's shoulders. "God. Kacey, what did we just do?" She gasped out as she fought off a panic attack. There was no time to descend into her baser instincts- she needed all her wits about her if she was going to get out alive.

Weakly, her friend asked, "Do you really think he'll go through with it?" Madison's lack of response was more than enough of an answer and Kacey started to breathe deeply in an attempt to calm herself.

"Ok," Madison started, attempting to flick stray strands of hair back by shaking her head. "We just need to stay calm and stick to our story. They're part of a myth from the history books." She groaned miserably. "Could I possibly have come up with a stupider lie?" Kacey remained quiet while Madison worked through their situation mentally. "Please, Kacey, just don't talk when the next guy comes in. We can't risk revealing anything else."

Cringing at the mention of her costly mistake, Kacey nodded her head. "I'm really sorry Maddy. It was an accident. He seemed so nice and-"

She was cut off abruptly as Madison shushed her. There, outside the door, they could hear the increasing sound of footsteps heading in their direction. Steeling herself, Madison shot a look over to Kacey and warned lowly. "Not a word, Kacey. Let me handle it."

Kacey had no chance to respond as the door opened with a screech and in stepped the looming frame of Akasuna no Sasori. Despite having read the manga and knowing how youthful his appearance was, Madison still stared mindlessly at the man in front of her. His features were beautiful, angelic even, but she supposed that was the benefit of being able to recreate yourself at will.

Sasori's face betrayed nothing as he observed the two pitiful looking girls in the middle of the room. Madison and Kacey stared back at him silently, and Madison noted that he had brought in a couple small packs and prayed that they were filled with medical supplies rather than the poisons he was renowned for.

She tried to rationalize that Madara wanted them alive for their information, but that did little to stop the frantic pace of her heart. Warily, she watched as Sasori walked over to Kacey and proceeded to tilt her head this way and that, all the while remaining silent.

Clearing her throat lightly, she ventured to make small talk- maybe he'd reveal _something _to give her an idea of what to expect. Knowing one thing that would guarantee his attention, no matter how obvious, Madison commented, "So, uh, I hear you're an artist." Playing dumb, she asked. "What's your medium of choice?"

He glanced in her direction, but maintained his bored expression while answering. "Puppets." His blunt answer certainly did nothing to encourage conversation, but Madison continued on, hoping to get a reaction. "I like puppets, but usually I just flower arrange and make ceramic figures. How many puppets have you made?"

By that point, he had finished examining Kacey's head for injuries and both girls watched, amazed as his had lit with a green glow as he used medical chakra to check internally. Madison was so captivated by his display of chakra usage that she almost missed the question he swiftly asked.

His voice was very smooth, though not necessarily deep, but it was entrancing. If he wasn't a mass murdering, psychotic terrorist that made live people into weaponized puppets, Madison could have seen him as some form of announcer- he'd certainly catch peoples' attention. "What is your definition of true art?"

Wryly, Madison considered the question hundreds, if not thousands of Sasori and/or Deidara fans must've pondered at one point. Internally, she waged a war with logic; clearly, his definition was that art is eternal, but she didn't necessarily believe that. There were so many forms of art that she couldn't just say one definitive thing about it and be honest. Maybe it was just best to lie, but Madison was a strong willed girl. Her pondering of the question was apparently taking too long, because the man let out an impatient sigh as he moved over to her.

Deciding to answer before he laid a hand on her, Madison went with her gut and told him, "Art is everything. It can be both instantaneous and eternal; it just depends on the viewer."

Sasori's eyebrow quirked slightly, and he mulled over her answer for a minute before flatly stating. "You are foolish. Art can only be eternal; anything but is trash." Despite the harsh response, Madison noticed what seemed like appraisal in his eyes, though she knew it would change nothing about her circumstances.

While she was lost in her thoughts, Sasori had run through her check up and was digging through his bag. Abruptly, he turned to her and forced a capsule between her lips, then covered her mouth and forced her to swallow. Choking down air, Madison barely registered that he did the same to Kacey before packing up and heading for the door.

"W-wait," Kacey managed to gasp out. "What did you just give us?" Sasori remained silent, but paused right before exiting the room.

"That was just something to ensure your cooperation." Was all he said before quietly exiting the room, leaving the two girls to have their panic attacks.


	9. Taciturn

**A/N: Don't hate me? I know it's been awhile and I'm so sorry! Life got really crazy and I haven't had a lot of time, let alone inspiration, to write Chapter 9 until now… Anyway, in apology for taking such an agonizing amount of time to post, here's a super long chapter! **

**On that note, I would like to thank all of my readers who have reviewed/favorited/followed Imbroglio! Please, please, please review! You'll seriously make my day, even if it's just a demand to update faster! **

**First, before I get to the chapter, I would like to solemnly acknowledge the Sandy Hook Massacre victims and their families. I am so horrified for their loss and I can't possibly comprehend how awful it must be to lose your own child at the hands of a deranged gunman. I'd like to dedicate this chapter to them, even if it is late by about a month…**

**-Amai-chan**

Chapter 9

Taciturn

A loud clatter rang through the dimly lit room in which Brenda Faling was currently held captive. Freezing, she cocked her head and listened carefully for footsteps in the hallway before swearing and continuing to wrestle with the ropes tying her to the uncomfortable chair. Another few minutes of struggling led to her slumping as far as the binds would let her and cursing once again at her powerlessness.

Staring harshly around the room, Brenda began to realize that she wasn't in some small prison cell like she had first suspected. Her eyes traced the pattern of the blue spaceship wallpaper that was barely visible through the overpowering darkness and the realization hit her suddenly. Around her were toys stuffed everywhere, a small twin sized bed shoved in the corner and childish wallpaper; she was in a kid's room.

Her brows furrowed in thought as she thought over her epiphany. If she was in a little kid's room, then what happened to the kid? Straining her eyes in the shroud of darkness, her eyes raked over every detail of the room from the almost indiscernible pair of swim trunks on a pile of clothes to the abandoned, well-loved train set shoved haphazardly under the tiny bed. Just as she was going to go back to brooding over her seemingly unattainable escape, she spotted a large dark spot on the carpet, inches from a nondescript dresser. Leaning forward as far as the ropes would allow, she glared down at the large stain, somehow knowing that it was significant in some way.

Rattling the chair a bit, she managed to shift it to the side in the direction of the spot. Grunting, she put all of her weight into each move and, in an agonizingly slow fashion, she inched her way towards the mark. Irritation washed over her as she bemoaned her tied legs. If her captors had only left her legs loose, or even just tied them together rather than to the chair, she would've made a lot more progress.

As it was, sweat dripped down her forehead and she panted softly from the exertion of moving the chair under such circumstances. After what seemed like an hour of shuffling, she had just a few paces to go, and in her frustration she hurdled too much of her weight to the top of the chair and not enough to the bottom. Desperately, she tried to regain her balance to refrain from tipping over right onto the stain, but her actions just served to quicken her fall. With a solid thud and a sharp pain, Brenda landed on her side. To her horror, a metallic stench filled her nose as her face pressed into a sticky, congealing puddle of what she knew to be blood.

A churning stomach and an overwhelming wave of dizziness distracted Brenda from the door creaking open to admit two figures, but a gravelly voice chuckled loudly, wiping all traces of nausea from her mind.

"Looks like she attempted to escape us, Itachi-San. How adorable." As the loud voice echoed in her ears, Brenda was swiftly yanked back up and pulled to the center of the room by a relatively normal looking black haired man. Her focus wasn't on him though; Brenda's eyes were glued to the behemoth of a man standing in front of her. It wasn't even his sheer mass that stunned her- it was a combination of his sharp, pointed teeth, pale blue skin, and _gills_, of all things.

The large man ignored her gaping and turned to his presently silent partner who loomed behind her like a wraith. "What did leader want us to do with her again? She looks sufficiently scared to me; I'm sure she'll trip over herself to talk." Brenda felt herself stiffen in indignation and fury that welled inside her during the following seconds of silence as the men silently communicated.

Feeling a wave of courage raise within her, Brenda opened her mouth and firmly addressed the behemoth in front of her. "What did you do to the little boy that lived here? Did you kill him?"

He leveled his beady black eyes at her and his amused smirk faded as a cloak of seriousness overtook him. The man glanced over her shoulder in what looked like permission seeking before answering. "He has been disposed of properly."

"_Disposed of properly?_" She spat out before she could bite her tongue. "He was a little boy who was murdered before he even had a chance to live and all you can say is that he was 'disposed of properly'?"

She took a deep breath and prepared to continue her tirade, too overcome by the emotions rampaging through her mind. She grieved for the loss the parents must have felt, knowing their son would never play with his beloved train set again and he would never have a chance to marry or go to college or have his own family. Just as she was about to rip the horrid man in front of her a new asshole, a smooth, deep voice cut through the silence, effectively cutting her off.

"It is a terrible loss, but he was a liability. He and his parents knew too much." The man who was previously looming behind her strode over to stand near his partner with graceful steps. Brenda's mind stuttered to a halt as she meet the blazing red eyes of this supposed 'Itachi'. They were unnatural, demonic even. Her earlier belief of his relative normality was blown away by the sight of his terrifying eyes. Then, as if she were drugged, an overwhelming wave of tiredness overtook her and the world grew blurry as she slumped forward in a coma-like sleep.

Itachi watched her unconscious frame for a few seconds before turning to Kisame and nodding towards the door. The two congregated in the hall outside Brenda's room and Kisame broke the silence with a weary sigh.

"How much longer are we going to deal with this information gathering? We could've been scoping out the White House if Deidara didn't find target number one." He partially ranted to his stoic partner. The time spent collecting Intel and staying under cover heightened Kisame's bloodlust to an almost unbearable level. He was yearning for a challenging battle or, at the very least, a small massacre, neither of which seemed to be in his future.

His ire was curbed by a sharp glance from Itachi. "This is more important. Come, we must speak to Leader-sama." Grumbling under his breath, Kisame followed his partner reluctantly through the halls of their base. The once-upscale home was beginning to show the wear and tear of confining ten irritable and blood thirsty shinobi in the form of dented walls, blood residue on the carpet, and charred decorations.

A brief walk later found the duo standing in front of Pein in a room resembling a makeshift office. "Leader-sama, Faling-San has been put into temporary stasis. She is adequately flustered and is ready for interrogation at your signal." Itachi reported coolly, eying his leader's reaction.

Pein nodded, a small frown gracing his face before glancing at Konan, seemingly conveying a thought. She nodded and left the room, silently closing the door behind her.

"Itachi-San, Kisame-San, I believe that we have delayed the investigation of the White House for long enough. I expect both of you to leave tomorrow at first light and return with adequate information about their supposed 'President' by nightfall." Seeing their synchronized nods of acceptance, he dismissed them just as Konan arrived back to the office.

Pein stood and gazed out the window with Konan moving to join him. "Nagato," She started, gazing at his stiff expression worriedly. "What are we going to do? Madara is getting antsy and we have no idea how to get back to Ame..."

The man's frown deepened and his eyebrows furrowed in thought as he placated her worries. "There is no need to be concerned, Konan. I have the teams looking into this 'America' and my other paths are observing the site of our transport in Ame. As for Madara, we will just have to keep an eye on him. He-"

"Keep an eye on whom?" A chilling voice questioned as the form of Tobi appeared out of shadows in a corner of the room. "You're not keeping secrets again, are you _Nagato?" _His voice was light, but the undertone of malice shone with a veiled threat.

"Madara," Pein drawled out in an imitation of welcome. "Please, join us. We were just discussing the necessity of keeping a tighter reign over Hidan and Deidara. Their destructive habits are bringing too much attention."

"Hn," Madara grunted while moving closer to the pair. "Itachi has informed me that you're sending him and Kisame to the White House for Intel. Do you plan on waiting for them to come back before interrogating our guests?" The blatant condescension in his voice raised Pein's hackles, but he forced the slight irritation down before answering.

"Your sudden interest in our prisoners is odd, Madara. Perhaps there is something you have found out that you are withholding." Pein sharply insinuated.

The resulting cackle from Tobi caused an unpleasant atmosphere that refused to dissipate even after he teleported quickly from the room, his last quip ringing in the ears of its inhabitants.

"You should be more concerned about loyalty from a closer source, Nagato-kun."

Disturbed, Pein looked to Konan, whose worries were written across her face. "Nagato, what did he mean by that? Surely he couldn't mean that there's a snake in the organization?"

Sighing deeply, Pein began to walk for the door, followed closely by Konan. "For now, we will observe and take action only when we are certain."

With that, they paced down the hallway and entered the dark room containing the first prisoner.

When Brenda awoke, it wasn't gradual like her last stint with unconsciousness. A sharp zap ripped through her body, wrenching her awake with all the subtlety of a stampeding herd of elephants. Trying to calm her racing heart and registering the throbbing headache wreaking havoc on her mental faculties, she became aware of the two sets of eyes boring into her skull.

Forcing focus past the pounding ache, Brenda lifted her head to glare at her captors, but froze as her gaze met some of the strangest eyes she had ever seen. The concentric circles surrounding the small pupils and the steely silver shade seemed to draw her in like a moth to the light. Sure, Itachi's demonic bloody red eyes were terrifying and Brenda knew instantly that he was not one to be trifled with, but _these _eyes seemed worse, somehow. This man's eyes bespoke of unparalleled power, like a God walking amongst pitiable humans. She knew, just by one look, that she would not be able to negotiate with this man.

Desperate, she switched her gaze to the other set of eyes, positioned next to the intimidating man. Brenda slightly widened her eyes as she met the impassive gaze of a stunning, blue haired woman. Wryly, she noted that at least the terrorist group she was held captive by seemed to be an equal opportunity employer. First, the clearly psychotic masked man, then the man who seemed to be half fish, the demonic red eyed one, the intimidating one with the ringed eyes and now a woman. _All they need is someone with daisies popping out of their ass and they'll be a fully fledged circus. _

Her delusional thoughts were abruptly ended by a smooth, controlled voice introducing himself. "Brenda Faling, welcome. I am Pein, the leader of Akatsuki, and this is Konan, my partner." Silently, she stared at them, wondering if they really expected a reply. _Maybe they want thanks for their complementary kidnapping? Fat chance._

Pein continued, ignoring her silence and sharp glare. "It has come to our attention that you have been investigating our group as the leader in your position at your country's military headquarters- the Pentagon, I believe it was called." Still, Brenda remained quiet, wondering what point he was trying to conclude.

"We cannot allow this to continue." _Ah. So they're going to off me. _Brenda drew the conclusion, pushing panic to the side before asking. "If you were just going to kill me to get me out of the way, why have your men go through the trouble of kidnapping me? It certainly would have been easier to shoot me from a distance. I'm sure your terrorist cell has plenty of sniper rifles."

Pein just glanced at her before pacing a bit forward and settling the full force of his stare on her face. "I am afraid that it is not that simple, Faling-San. You have crucial information that we need; we _will _get this information whether or not you decide to cooperate peacefully."

Before she could stop herself, Brenda snorted dryly. "It depends on what information you want. I am bound by oath to never reveal certain information, but hell, I could tell you the name of the 50 states, what team won the Super Bowl, who is the current President..." Then, as if realizing what flew out of her mouth, she clicked it shut and slumped further down in her chair. _God, shut up! What the hell was I thinking, mouthing off like that to these terrorists? They'll rip me apart._

Just as she was debating the merits of swallowing her tongue, Pein responded to her rant. "I see. There is no need for torture then, if you are willing to cooperate." Brenda's mouth dropped and her face paled with horror as she studied his face for any sign that he wasn't serious; her stomach dropped like an anvil when she realized he was.

Konan stepped up beside her partner and looked at her partner questioningly, and at his nod began asking the long list of questions.

"What is this 'sniper rifle' you assumed we have?"

**Thank you for reading this chapter! Please review to let me know how it was!**


	10. Descry

**A/N: Wow! I can hardly believe that Imbroglio is already ten chapters long! It feels like just yesterday that I started the first chapter out of a random urge. :) Anyway, here's the new chapter! This was particularly difficult to write because I ended up having to research the layout of the white house and the decorations etc. It was exasperating because I found out that, apparently, the government deems it necessary to redecorate every time there's a new president. Yay. Anyway, while this chapter isn't nearly as thrilling as Hidan hacking some poor sucker to pieces, it was necessary to build up to the events that happen next chapter… **

**Now, I need to address an issue that I just became aware of these past few weeks. I recently got a PM from a reader that I will not identify, who was very upset because they saw my story as condoning terrorist attacks and murder etc. I wasn't even aware that this would be an issue to my readers, because this is a fictional story. Clearly these events are not happening, nor will they ever. Since it was brought to my attention, I feel that it's necessary to state that I ****do not****, nor ****will I ever**** condone acts of terrorism, murder, espionage etc. Take this story at face value please. I write it for the sole purpose of entertainment for both me and my readers. Hence why it's on fanfiction…**

**Since that's out of the way, I would like to give out a special thanks to Hurlstien, Disturbedkid94, daydreamer1008, and kayra isis for either reviewing, favoriting or following Imbroglio!**

**For my other silent readers out there, please, please, please review! It means a lot to me as a writer to get feedback even if it's just an urge to write faster. **

**Thanks for reading!**

**-Amai-chan**

Chapter 10

Descry

"You just _had _to prove your theory right, didn't you? This is so stupid. If I had just stayed home and slept in late instead of traipsing across the city with you on some asinine quest, then I wouldn't be in this mess." Kacey ranted, unabashed. It had been several hours since Sasori had graced them with his presence, and Kacey's continuous complaints were fraying on Madison's last nerve. The unidentified pill that they were both forced to swallow rested uncomfortably in the pit of her stomach and Madison suspected it was some type of slow acting poison to "encourage" them to speak for the antidote.

Cringing as Kacey shrieked at the end of her latest tirade in a fit of frustration, she failed to bite back her searing retort. "You're the one that followed me, Kacey. I didn't force you to do anything, so quit trying to act like the victim."

"_Excuse me_?!" Kacey sharply asked, an infuriated expression on her face. "Don't you tell me what I should or should not do! I _am _the victim here. I wanted to end our little search party early and go home before we got in trouble, but no. You couldn't have _that_. No, Madison Young _always _has to be right! And now look at us-"

"God, Kacey, just _shut up_ already. You're getting on my damn nerves with all your whining! We're stuck here and you're just going to have to suck it up and _deal with it._" Madison ground out between her clenched teeth.

Before Kacey could retort, a deep, amused voice commented from a dark corner of the room. "Well, well. Look at this- my two little prisoners squabbling like irritated birds." Madara watched, entertained as both girls stiffened and swiveled their heads to face him as he raised his voice in imitation of his Tobi persona. "Does Tobi need to take Maddy-chan away from Kacey-chan?"

Before either could answer, his voice dropped back to its normal octave and he drawled out, seemingly uncaring. "We wouldn't want any accidents, now would we?" Madison shifted uncomfortably in her seat at his undisguised threat. In the process of reading the manga, she had recognized that he was a man who regularly utilized subtle threats, but this unexpected interest in both her and Kacey seemed to bring out a particularly aggressive streak in him. Perhaps it was the strain of being in a foreign dimension? Shaking her head free of the asinine thoughts, Madison gained the gall to ask. "What is it that you want from us? We're just civilians- teenaged civilians. We don't have anything but information to offer you."

Wearily, she watched as he strolled over to her and placed his gloved hand at the crown of her head and stroked the hair softly in a twisted mockery of a loving gesture. "It just so happens, Maddy-chan, that information is exactly what I am after."

Choosing the safer option of staying silent in hopes of not angering him, Madison stayed perfectly still as he continued petting her hair. "I have some questions that you will answer, Maddy-chan, or I will be forced to make you cooperate. I would hate to stain that pretty skin with blood, but I am a determined man. I will use any means necessary to obtain this intel."

Paling at his implications of torture, Madison just nodded in compliance. Pleased with her willingness, Tobi moved to stand in front of her, his tall form looming above hers like a vulture over prey. "How much do you know about the Akatsuki? How did you come to learn about it?"

Despite knowing that she should've expected those questions, Madison hesitated briefly before noticing his hand slide towards a conspicuously placed weapon pouch. "As I said before, we learned about it as folklore in history class. We just know the basics about the Akatsuki, like the names of the members and what your goals are."

The man in front of her scoffed before replying. "Come now, do you think me a fool? I know you are withholding information. I asked you nicely; do not make me ask again."

Gulping, Madison relented. "Ok, I do know a lot more than that, but only because I researched your group!" _Well, that isn't a total lie. I did spend inordinate amounts of time reading about each of them. _Seeing his impatient stance at her unwarranted pause, she hurried to continue. "I know the trademark abilities of each of the Akatsuki and their pasts and some information about your future..."

"Really now." She could almost sense the pleased grin he wore under his mask at the implications of having knowledge of the future. "And what, pray tell, have you learned about the future?" _He's like the cat that caught the canary._ The thought raced through her mind, and with a sense of dread, she realized that _she _was the canary.

"It depends on what events have happened so far. What was the last thing to happen before you came here?" Madison queried, feeling resigned.

Crouched high up, concealed within the evergreen branches of a tree, Itachi and Kisame studiously observed the large building known as the White House. Taking in the extensive manicured lawns, countless fountains, exotic gardens and opulent roman style architecture, Kisame let out a low whistle.

"Looks like this country spares no expense when it comes to their rulers. I would've expected more guards though." His partner grunted in acknowledgement, still carefully tracking the movements of the various people outside the building. Grumbling at the irritating lack of entertainment by both conversation and battle, Kisame restlessly fidgeted. Samehada's displeasure at being without chakra for so long was a constant nagging sensation in the back of his mind, only serving to whittle down his patience.

As if sensing the ticking time bomb of Kisame's waning patience, Itachi suddenly stood and addressed him. "There seems to be preparations for some type of event; there will be more people than normal. We must proceed with caution." With that, they shot off, looking like nothing more than a blur as they headed for a service exit at the rear of the building.

Reaching the door and finding it locked, Itachi flooded the key hole with chakra and manipulated the gears until it popped open with a soft click. Like shadows, they skulked past crates containing fresh fruits and vegetables into what appeared like a large, chaotic kitchen. Before anyone noticed their presence, Itachi cast a low level genjutsu to appear invisible to their victims.

Gesturing for Kisame to follow, Itachi carefully dodged around frantic workers and tables piled high with extravagant delicacies. Snippets of conversations flowed past Kisame's ears as he weaved his way through the chaos.

"-I hear the Prime Minister is going to be at the dinner tonight."

"Not like that! I said _brown it_ not _burn-"_

"-you come here often?"

Finally, they reached the exit of the kitchen and proceeded to slip out into a grandly decorated hall with heavy looking velvet curtains and polished checker marble floors. Glancing around as his partner reinforced the genjutsu surrounding them, Kisame noted the stiff looking men in suits milling around the open area.

Keeping his voice to a whisper, he asked his partner, "Do you know which way we need to go?" Impassive, Itachi gestured for Kisame to follow him as he silently approached the larger cluster of guards. The archway that led down the wing they were headed towards was mostly blocked by two bulky men who seemed intent on standing like two stern statues.

Kisame eyed the narrow crack between the beefy looking men surreptitiously, and then raised an eyebrow at his unaffected partner. Itachi, ignoring Kisame's pointed look, stealthily slipped between the men with room to spare. Groaning internally at having to somehow fit his large frame between the guards, Kisame carefully slipped Samehada off his back to thin himself and sidled up to the men quietly. Breathing lightly, he slowly squeezed through the men. As he moved, he almost choked on a cloud of noxious aftershave that encompassed one of the men. Stumbling as his brain tried to register through the haze, he managed to make it through the gap unnoticed. Disgruntled, Kisame straightened himself out before looking at Itachi only to become even more annoyed as he noticed the amused air about his partner. A few minutes passed as they traversed through bustling halls and up a flight of stairs to a relatively empty landing.

Itachi nodded in the direction for Kisame to follow him as he swooped down the quiet hallway before coming across a closed double door. The duo stood still and listened for a minute for signs of occupation in the room beyond the door. After hearing nothing for a short period, Itachi carefully turned the knob and cracked it open to reveal a large, lavishly decorated banquet room.

The pair slipped into the room and closed the door behind them before Kisame drawled out. "Looks like they're having some sort of diplomatic dinner tonight. Shall we join the party?" He smiled darkly, displaying his rows of sharp teeth.

Unamused by Kisame's bloodlust, Itachi frowned slightly before answering. "No. We have a deadline." As he listened to his colleague grumble about the lack of fun, Itachi studied the room around them. There were tables covered in fine, cream colored linens, precarious looking stacks of delicate china on carts, and expensive looking floral arrangements tastefully dotted around the room. A large painting of a tall, bearded man adorned the mantle above a grand fireplace, which was illuminated by a gilded chandelier.

To the left, he noted a closed, wooden door which he opened to reveal a grandiose sitting room with thick crimson drapes, old fashioned crushed velvet couches and various paintings depicting historical scenes. Itachi and Kisame made their way past the furniture to a window overlooking a manicured garden rimmed with blooming sakura trees, colorful tulips and pruned rose bushes. In one quick movement, the window was popped open and the screen removed. Both men swooped out and into a nearby tree, closing the window against the pouring rain in the process.

They observed the various men in suites as they walked under a covered terrace lined with white roman columns at the rim of the garden. From their perch they could see the strange, circular wall of a small part of the next building over. Itachi strained to hear Kisame's comment, "I'm willing to bet a bottle of saké that room is important." Itachi inclined his head in response before lightly leaping down to the lined terrace followed closely by Kisame. The rain water dripped off their cloaks and pooled on the floor at their feet. Itachi shot a look at Kisame, who then flicked his wrist and manipulated the water off and into a bush in the garden next to them.

A few more minutes of prudent travel later, the two shinobi reached the glass French doors leading into the wing with the rounded room. Kisame scoffed as they easily pushed into the hallway without notice. "You'd think they'd have sturdier doors than these flimsy glass ones and more guards to protect their leader from assassins. Are they that arrogant?"

Without answering, Itachi continued down the carpeted hallway, which was suspiciously empty. Kisame watched the surrounding area warily, while asking his partner, "Do you think this is a set up? Samehada doesn't sense anyone nearby." His partner shook his head to the negative, scanning the room with his sharingan. "The people here have even less chakra than that of the civilians at home. Samehada would not be able to sense it."

Grumbling at the unintentional insult to his sword's abilities, Kisame only nodded in acknowledgement of his partner's explanation. The team pushed further down the hall, approaching a door and a turn off into a corridor to the right. As they got closer, the clamor of dozens of voices, ringing phones, and loud televisions traveled to the two ninja. Exchanging glances, they turned down the hall in tandem and reached a large area surrounded by offices that was crowded with frantic men and women.

On the television that was closest to the entrance, the pair could see a sky view of a smoking ruin from one of the many buildings in downtown DC. A reporter's voice could be heard above the voices and ringing in the room. _"As of now, it is unknown whether or not this was an accident or not, but there is speculation of it being the work of the rogue Al Qaeda branch that has been active for weeks now. So far the death toll is estimated to be in the hundreds, but the response teams are still pulling bodies out of the debris while attempting to put out the remaining fires." _

At that, Itachi headed for the nearest empty office followed closely by Kisame. After examining the immediate area to make sure they would not be heard, Kisame sighed, "Looks like Deidara couldn't resist blowing shit up. Again. Leader-sama is going to skin him alive for disobeying orders." The only answer he got from Itachi was a slightly furrowed brow and a small frown to show his disapproval of Deidara's actions. Quickly, they looked through the files piled on the desk in the office, finding nothing of value before moving on to the next one.

Three offices and one close call with a clumsy intern later found the shinobi in a bigger office than the others with large stacks of files cluttering the detailed, mahogany desk in the corner of the office. The noise in the other room was beginning to die down a bit and they could see though the open door that the workers were heading back to their offices. Hastily, they flipped through the files as one particularly sharp looking man headed their way from across the room.

Finally, after multiple tense seconds, Kisame found the file about the recent terrorist attacks and stuffed it into the deep pockets of his cloak. As he looked up to signal Itachi, Kisame witnessed him taking a smaller file from the pile and tucking it into his cloak. Raising his eyebrow, he tilted his head towards the open door and exited the room together, narrowly avoiding the stern looking man that occupied the large office.

The pair made it to an unoccupied corner of the open room, far from anyone that could overhear before Itachi turned to Kisame. "I have mapped out the majority of this wing except for the rounded room. We need to find and identify the 'president' of this country before we can leave." Nodding his understanding, Kisame led the way out of the building they were in and on to the covered terrace from before. "The terrace curves around the rounded room. We could probably get access through the windows if there isn't a door."

Nodding, Itachi slunk across the terrace, approaching the rounded walls. To their luck, a large, white wood and glass door overlooked the rose garden and the terrace. Sidling up to the clear door, Itachi peered into the oval office, crimson sharingan blazing. Locking his eyes on the busy man sitting behind the ornate oak desk bearing the seal of the presidential seal, he only uttered two words.

"Target identified."


End file.
